Communication
by Royal9000
Summary: An Academy Student Naruto doesn't like that he's hearing a voice in his head. It sounds too bloodthirsty for his liking. Except, when it makes an offer to teach him about his lineage and train him practically for free, who is he to deny a free lunch? It might get him one step closer to bad-assery! T for language, but that's probably overly-cautious. Could be K if you squint.
1. Chapter 1

Naruto Uzumaki was not having a good day.

Specifically, the man who was holding him upside-down by the ankles, shaking him over and over was making it impossible for Naruto to have a good day. The worst part was that the civilians that kept walking by on the street didn't even look twice at the usually criminal act.

"Put me down, you oversized goon!" Naruto screeched. He was a second year at the academy, goddamnit, and when he graduated after a year and a bit of time, he would not forget this! "I am Naruto Uzumaki, and I will become the Hokage, and I won't forgive you for this!"

The giant, bald man simply kept shaking, and when any form of currency failed to appear, dropped him. "Che. What a waste of time. The Demon Brat doesn't even have a cent on him."

Naruto quickly looked up and glared at the man. "That's because you stole everything I had YESTERDAY!" Upon receiving nothing more than an apathetic shrug, Naruto grabbed the man's shirt. "AndIwantitback!" He shouted, not pausing between words in his haste.

The man just scoffed and turned away, knocking Naruto's hand aside. Naruto felt himself grow angry, but he forced himself to stand still. Anything he did would just validate the villagers' hatred. As long as he didn't actively hurt people, and stuck to pranks instead, he would be fine.

At least, that's what he told himself as he stood there, ten-year-old fists clenched, and seething at the world in general. What had HE ever done to warrant such hatred? Why did everyone despise him so?

And what the hell was up with that nickname? How the hell was he supposed to be a demon?

**"I assume they were talking about me, boy." The voice spoke calmly, but with an undertone that told of volumes of hatred and evil.**

Naruto spun around, frantically searching. His wild actions got some strange looks from the civilians, and the occasional mutter that questioned his sanity, but it was nothing new.

**"I'm in your head, foolish child. Do not embarrass me further by acting like a complete and utter nincompoop in public."** Again, the voice. What was it doing? Didn't it know he had enough problems without mysterious voices?

"I am not a nincompoop!" Naruto replied angrily. This actually caused one of the civilians to freeze, make some sort of strangled noise, and walk in the other direction.

**"See?"** The voice said. **"I would imagine that he was saying the exact same thing when you so foolishly answered out loud and frightened him."**

Naruto scowled and began walking in the direction of the academy at an accelerated pace. He didn't want to be late. In an undertone, he asked, "Who are you? What right do you have to be in my mind?"

The voice laughed harshly. **"The right? More like the displeasure! If I had my way, this whole pathetic settlement you call a village would be flattened, and you would have died at the ripe old age of two hours!"**

Naruto paused in mid-step, then continued at a noticeably slower pace. "You want to destroy Konoha?" He asked, suddenly painfully aware of the fact that he was talking to a voice in his head.

But the voice remained silent.

Naruto used all of his brainpower (which wasn't much) to think of who would ever want to destroy the only place he had ever known, but came up short. He knew a lot of people who wanted to hurt HIM, but never the village itself. It would have to take someone with a personal vendetta to hate the village that much-at least that was the only thing that Naruto could think of. No one was that evil.

So Naruto used the rest of the morning walking to school, thinking of all the villains, fictional and nonfictional, he had heard others talk about. Naturally, it was all second-hand. Nobody would allow him into their stores, except for this one weapons dealer who had a daughter that was a third-year at the academy. He had no grudge against Naruto, but he had confided in the young boy that his wife downright despised him, so he couldn't associate with his family outside of his store. Naruto liked that man. He didn't know the daughter at all, though. Maybe he'd one day be able to make a friend out of her.

Naruto was so lost in thought that when he reached the academy and entered the classroom, he almost forgot to say hi to Sakura. Of course, 'almost' is called 'almost' for a reason.

"GOOD MORNING, SAKURA-CHAN!"

Just like Sakura 'almost' missed smacking Naruto's face so hard it turned cherry red at the point of impact. Naruto grinned a bit, despite the stinging pain. "I guess you're turning me down? Ne, Sakura, why you gotta be like that?"

Sakura didn't even respond, instead opting to ignore him and to sit down by that Uchiha kid-another potential friend, seeing as he and Sasuke were both loners. The only difference was that one came from a prestigious clan, while the other came from the streets. Whenever Naruto had tried to be friendly, the Uchiha, who Naruto had dubbed Sasuke-teme, had just snubbed him, apparently happy with his exile from society. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that Sasuke could go back from his self-imposed solitude at any time and be welcomed with open arms, while Naruto had to live with it for the rest of his life.

Naruto was sure that his fangirls were enough to keep him from feeling lonely, and he felt a bubble of jealousy well up inside him as he took his seat, large numbers of kids moving directly and deliberately away from him. His trademark grin nearly faltered, but he caught himself just in time. If he looked sad, the others would make fun of him for it.

Then, Iruka-sensei walked in, and Naruto was instantly paying attention. "Hello, class!"

"Hello, Iruka-sensei," the class chorused

Everyone except Naruto, that is, who causally waved. "Hey Iruka-sensei, how's it going?"

Iruka grinned slightly at Naruto before casually waving back and beginning the lesson. "Today in history class, I thought we would do something different. Instead of just learning the names and deeds of great shinobi, we're going to have some class interaction!"

A small amount of murmuring ran around the classroom; this was new. Iruka had always been so rank-and-file with their lessons before-here's a ninja's name, here's a date, here's what made said ninja a badass. That last part was Naruto's own wording (which Iruka had actually wholeheartedly agreed with), but the point still stood.

Iruka smiled at the interest. "Consider this a gift. If you recall, we only have one more week until the end of school, and then you will be given a slight reprieve of two months before you begin the third and final year of education."

Naruto's eyebrows shot up so far they disappeared into his hairline. He had completely forgotten about that! After next week, he would have a month and a half of nothing to do before returning to the academy. Naruto didn't want that to happen, though. In the academy, he might've been dead last, but it was a place where people actually gave him the time of day-albeit, they were forced to, but the point still stood! The kids might dislike him, but their glares didn't have the same weight or hatred behind them as the adults. Outside of the academy, he was an outcast, a pariah, someone who you would not only not give the time of day to, but deliberately lie about the time of day, just to spite him. Naruto shook his head and cleared it of negative thoughts. He would just ignore them, no matter how angry they made him. And he focused back on Iruka-sensei's lesson.

"Today, everyone who wants to will give their birthday, and I'll tell you about a shinobi who was associated with that date for some reason. Go on, no reason to be shy! We need to fill up an entire class period, so we gotta have a lot of people go!"

The girl on Naruto's right, Hinata Hyuuga, the only one who hadn't rushed away from the boy as soon as he had sat down, timidly and slowly raised her hand. "Um... Well, my birthday is the twenty-seventh of December..." Then, she ducked her head as if she was embarrassed to have gone first.

Naruto liked Hinata; she was the only one who didn't immediately run away when he entered a room, but whenever he tried to talk and make friends with her, she would turn red, make an excuse, and get the hell away from him. He didn't really understand why, and he didn't know her that well, anyways, but she at least wasn't mean to his face, and Naruto appreciated that.

"Heeey, Hinata!" Naruto said rather loudly. "Why're you looking like you did something wrong?"

Naturally, this made Hinata turn red, start mumbling excuses, and turn away from the orange-clad boy.

Iruka laughed a bit at the interaction, which actually made Hinata sink a bit into her seat, trying to stay out of sight. "Don't worry so much, either of you! Anyways..." He put a finger to his chin. "December twenty-seventh... That would be the date of the Battle of Flames from the First Great Ninja War. That was the battle in which the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, died." A grimace formed on his face, but it passed quickly. "He was holding the line against Cloud shinobi, and bought the rest of Konoha troops time to escape, in exchange for his own life. We wouldn't be here today if he didn't manage to beat them off..." And then Iruka spend the next five or so minutes giving a brief summary of the battle, and how it impacted the rest of the war.

And so most students asked about their birthday's, each one receiving a miniature lecture on shinobi, each one greater than the last (except for the Nidaime, of course). Naruto tried to ask multiple times, but was always cut off by someone else who wanted to go before him. Finally, there was no one else to go, and Iruka looked to Naruto. Naruto looked with an expectant grin on his face as he said, "October tenth."

The entire classroom fell deathly silent. It stayed that way for a solid five minutes, and it didn't take Naruto that long to realize he had made some sort of mistake.

Finally, Iruka coughed. "Yes, October tenth. I'm sure most of you know this already, but that was the day of the Kyuubi attack, and the day that the fourth Hokage died. By sacrificing himself, he was able to subdue the Kyuubi and save the village." Naruto's eyes widened. He knew about the attack, obviously—you'd have to have lived under a rock for the past ten years to think otherwise—but he didn't know that it was on his BIRTHDAY! Come to think of it, that would explain why the citizens—especially the shinobi—were doubly mean on his birthday, even if it didn't explain why they were mean to him to begin with.

Iruka launched himself into a speech, but Naruto's thoughts were elsewhere. Specifically, they were back on that voice he had heard earlier today. _If I had my way, this whole pathetic settlement you call a village would be flattened, and you would have died at the ripe old age of two hours!_

Naruto raised a trembling hand. Iruka paused and motioned for him to ask (something else that no other teacher did). "What happened to the Kyuubi?"

Iruka went deathly pale. He hesitated for just a moment, before saying, with some difficulty, "It died."

And Naruto felt angry.

How DARE Iruka-sensei lie to his face! He had a right to the knowledge, since he was somehow connected to the not-dead-after-all nine-tailed fox! His blood began to boil, and he had to force himself not to mention his interaction earlier in the day. As it was, Naruto visibly grew tense, and even Hinata was shifting away from him in her seat.

**"I admire your deduction skills, boy, but you ought to suppress that killing intent, lest you wish for your classmates to kill you outright."**

Naruto jerked at the newly identified Kyuubi's voice, and realized with a start that everyone was looking at him. He let a grin spread across his face. "Hehe, I guess that The Fourth really showed that fox who's boss!" He scratched the back of his head, feigning embarrassment. "I'm just angry that it managed to kill him back!"

Iruka-sensei tentatively nodded, accepting the lie. Then, he continued talking about the battle, albeit a little slowly, and Naruto continued to seethe on the inside. The Kyuubi growled. **"As if the Demon Lord could ever be killed! I AM chakra. Only a force of nature of equal or greater power could ever destroy me!"**

Naruto adopted an undertone for his pending conversation with the Kyuubi. "What really happened?"

**"That idiot managed to take half of my power with him when he used a suicide technique. Before he died, he took a child and sealed the rest of me in him."** The demon seemed to sound more hateful with every syllable of that sentence."

"And that child was me?"

**"Your deductive skills are astounding."** This time, the remark was laced with sarcasm.

Naruto felt his anger grow. "Why would they-"

"Um... Naruto-kun?" A quiet voice said from his right-Hinata. "Who are you talking to?"

Naruto froze for just a second before relaxing, fearing that he had gotten caught. "Nobody, Hinata-chan!" His goofy grin never left his face. "I'm just making sure I understand the lesson by repeating it!"

Hinata nodded and ducked away, looking ashamed that she had even asked. Naruto frowned, but didn't have time to question her behaviour. He lowered his voice even more. "What happened?"

**"You know you can speak to me through thought, correct?"**

Naruto blinked. That was useful. It definitely would've come in handy several minutes ago, or when he was wondering who it was in his head. So why-

**"Because I enjoy spiting humans. It's the least I can do for sealing my eternal form into the body of a punk."** The Kyuubi said it so matter-of-factly that Naruto couldn't help but feel a little more annoyed. "**If you were as smart as I am, you would know that a being made of hatred would do everything it could to make people feel misery. Obviously, you deserve the name Dead Last."**

Naruto twitched. That was it. He didn't care if the fox could kill him, he didn't care how powerful or smart it was. He was going to go find it in his mind, and he would kill it! He could understand that his classmates hated him and called him names-it was something he was used to. But to be called useless by someone who lived in his mind was too much. That damn fox, of all people (or demons) should know that being an outcast was detrimental to mental growth!

**"I can still hear you, you know. And as for your previous question: They didn't tell you because they thought I WAS you. Who would tell a demon anything? A foolish assumption, maybe, but without knowing the details of the sealing, there was no other logical assumption for them to make. They thought they were doing good."**

Naruto felt his anger melt away. So that was it, was it? He could understand, then. More than once he had judged by appearances-Sasuke-teme had appeared as lonely as he had, so Naruto had tried making friends with him, but he had been wrong and the Uchiha had snubbed him. Only later did Naruto learn about the massacre. Even the rest of the kids could be excused-it would be obvious that nobody wanted their child to be near a demon, and the adults... Well, the adults had the same excuse, Naruto supposed. It still didn't remove the sting of pain or the fear of the world that Naruto felt, but it made the impulse to hurt him seem like a nonissue.

And with the absence of anger came silence, as the Kyuubi apparently decided that it wouldn't be able to have fun if Naruto wasn't angry. So, the loudest ninja in the academy began paying attention to the class.

"...and that concludes the final lesson for today," Iruka said. Damnit, he missed it! Well, at least he learned a lot about the Kyuubi. And, Naruto decided, he would somehow convince the villagers that he wasn't the fox reborn. And he WAS going to do something about that fox. It had hurt the village, so he would find some way to hurt it, even if it was the last thing he did!

With that thought in mind, Naruto headed to his next class.

The rest of the day passed without incident, and Naruto could feel the hostility from the rest of the students lessen just a bit, but not much. It was a small blessing that nobody tried to beat him up today, so Naruto was happy when he returned to his run-down, beat-up apartment. A day where he only got mugged once was a day where Naruto couldn't help but feel grateful. Naruto changed out of his jumpsuit into his pajamas, and got as warm as he could under his thin, moth-chewed blanket.

There was still the problem of that damn fox, though. He needed to both find a way to deal with it, definitely. It wouldn't do to have it speaking up to him. Although, why now? If the thing had been in his gut for ten whole years, what could have triggered the link?

Ah, well, that was a question for tomorrow. Naruto snored loudly as he drifted off to sleep.

When Naruto next opened his eyes, he was in what looked like a giant sewer. He frowned. He had been dumped into the Konoha sewers many times before, and they looked nothing like this.

"Hello?" He called. "Is anyone there?"

At first, nothing, but then, a small growl came from off to his left. So Naruto turned that way. As he walked through the sewers, occasionally calling out for another response, he couldn't help but feel at home here, despite the obvious, and despite its maze-like feel.

After what seemed like hours of walking, Naruto turned a corner to see a giant wall with what looked like prison bars behind it. Whatever was behind the bars was obscured by darkness, no matter how hard Naruto tried to squint.

"Hello?" He asked. This time, there was nothing but silence. In the absence of anything else to do, Naruto slowly walked towards the gate. His echoing footsteps sounded like thunder, and Naruto couldn't help but wonder if he was the only one there. As he got closer, he could make out a piece of paper with a kanji on it, attached to the gate. He couldn't see what it was from this distance, though, so he got closer and closer until he could see it clearly, when he was right in front of the bars. Then, he noticed the slitted pupil in the eye that was watching him from the darkness, and he jumped back, scared out of his wits. As if dispelling a genjutsu, the darkness behind the bars seemed to recede a little to reveal an animal so vast, it defied comprehension.

It grinned at him. **"Hello there, little boy."** The voice struck a chord in Naruto's memory and he immediately dropped into his approximation of a fighting stance.

"You!" He shouted, accusingly. "Where are we?"

The Kyuubi shrugged, as best as a quadruped could. **"Your mind. Where else would I be able to manifest a physical body?"**

And then Naruto caught the sight of the nine tails behind the fox, seven of them raised in the air slightly, with two more of them drooping behind him. The demon fox caught Naruto's eyes moving and growled**. "I see you've found my tails." **It was a statement, but it seemed loaded.

Naruto frowned. "What's wrong with those two?" He asked.

The Kyuubi snarled. **"That damn Hokage. Didn't I tell you he was able to destroy half of my power? Demons measure their power in terms of two things: tails and size. Well, it's slowly returning to me, but my power isn't what it was."**

Naruto frowned. If it took eleven years to recover two and a half tails worth of power, how long would it take for the last two? He voiced the question, and the demon shrugged again. **"Probably less. Five years at most, three years at least. Every time you get stronger, some of that power is siphoned off to me. I don't think that was part of the seal's design, but it benefits me, so I am content to remain sealed for now."**

Naruto felt a little uneasy at the 'for now' part. "What would you do if you were free today?"

Without hesitation, the Kyuubi replied, **"I'd get revenge."**

Naruto felt his stomach sink. It still wanted to destroy Konoha? When he had all nine tails back, would the seal hold him back? Would Naruto be able to do it? The Kyuubi seemed to read his face and understand what he was thinking, because it laughed.

**"Will you be able to contain nine tail's worth of demon power? That's twice as strong as the Hokage was! I'm sure I'll be able to influence your actions more than just a little."**

Naruto clenched his fists. That was a threat! And NOBODY threatened Naruto Uzumaki and got away with it! The villagers would all be punished when he became Hokage, so he would let it slide for now. But this fox!

"Why did you bring me here, stupid fox?"

The Kyuubi shrugged once more. **"Why indeed? This is your subconscious. You brought yourself here."**

Naruto frowned. "So... This is a dream?"

The Kyuubi let out a harsh laugh. **"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But why does that matter? If two beings share the same dream, who's to say it isn't real?"**

Naruto didn't pause to ponder that statement. "So why could my subconscious possibly want me to see you?" He put emphasis on the word 'you,' making it as much of an insult as possible.

The Kyuubi grinned, baring its fangs. **"Maybe your body wants power. It's scared, and it feels the need to protect itself. Until now, you were unaware of my existence, and so you didn't know to look to me for help. But now, I-"**

"YOU'RE WRONG!" Naruto glared at the beast.

The ninetails seemed taken aback, but then it sneered at him. **"Oh? And what does your conscious mind know about your subconscious, fool? I have been festering here for eleven long years, so I'd say I know a little more about your subconscious thoughts than you do!"**

Naruto didn't know where this bravery was coming from, but he didn't question it. It wasn't every day that he would be able to face down a tailed beast and come away unscathed (He didn't really think about the fact that said tailed beast was behind bars in his mind, so he could, in fact, face it down every day). "Just because I want power doesn't mean I want YOUR help to get it! You're nothing but a giant stupid-head!"

The Kyuubi snorted, obviously displeased.** "Your name-calling skills are as amazing as your detective skills."** Then, its face took on an arrogant guise. **"But you admit yourself that you want power. I am your fastest and easiest route to becoming Hokage and giving you the power to take revenge on the village. All you need to do is release me, and I'll-"**

"NO!" Naruto was angry again. Was he seriously expected to believe that releasing a monster on his hometown was a good idea? Even if he DID hold a grudge against the people-which-he didn't-he still needed a place to live. It was neither smart nor productive to listen the the fox. And he didn't WANT to take the easy way out, anyways. The definition of being a badass was to be able to do whatever you felt like, and if Naruto had to rely on the Kyuubi, then he wouldn't be able to do anything that the Kyuubi didn't want to do.

The bars of the cage rattled a bit, and the Kyuubi smirked as best he could, given the shape of his face. **"And yet here you stand before me. You cannot be so arrogant, so blind, so naive to think that you can achieve power any other way! You MUST let me free in exchange for learning the demon arts! You know that you hate the villagers! You despise them for how they've treated you! I know you do!"**

Naruto fought to keep himself still. Rationale and instinct told him to stand down, while his mind and emotions told him to charge at the beast, try to slip between the bars and kill it before it could hurt him. "Maybe, but revenge isn't the best answer!" Naruto was trembling with anger. "The job of a ninja is to protect, and anything else just isn't right! I'll find a way to get the power to become Hokage! You just watch!"

The Kyuubi eyed him curiously. **"Aren't you interesting, hmm? Most would have either given in to greed or foolishly tried to overcome me. One of them even undid his seal, long ago, to fight me in one-on-one combat, and immediately paid the price... But you, the more recent Uzumakis, you're a strange bunch."**

Naruto felt his heart skip a beat. Uzumakis? As in, more than one? "What do you know about my family?"

The Kyuubi looked positively terrifying for just a second as it grinned. **"Let's just say, you could call me your inheritance."**

Well, now that changed things. Naruto mulled it over in his mind. On the one hand, here was a beast, a monster, a demon that had tried to kill him, tried to destroy the only home he had ever known. It was literally a bundle of hate tied together with chakra strings. It was malevolent and horrifying, a force of nature that could not die. There were no other beings in he universe so powerful or deadly as to match the Kyuubi in raw power or chakra, and it would not hesitate to kill him if the thought even crossed its mind.

On the other hand... It knew his family.

"Alright, Kyuubi. I've got a deal for you: you tell me about my family, and I'll let you train me."

The demon fox looked absolutely disgusted**. "LET me train you? What, do I look like some sort of human teacher to you?"**

"But you just said you wanted me to grow strong, so that you could recover faster," Naruto argued. "If you train me, you might be back to full strength before I even become a genin."

The Demon Lord looked almost interested. **"And after? Those two tails of power, I would regain anyways. You would need to release me as soon as I get them back. Would you be willing?"**

Naruto frowned. "Well, no, but-"

**"Then I'm not interested!"** The fox said with finality. **"I would rather spite you; it amuses me so much when pain is inflicted on those I hate-namely, everyone alive, but especially you."**

Naruto gritted his teeth. "I was GOING to say, if I die before you're released, you pretty much die also, right? I mean, I know you're technically immortal, but you'd be reduced to no tails? You'd take a while to reform, right?"

Naruto took the beast's silence as a yes.

"Then train me! If I live to be a really old man, I'll set you free on my deathbed, with all nine tails intact. If I die before then, you lose everything. You already told me that it took eleven years of draining my chakra to get back just two and a half tails. Imagine how long it would take to gain back even one tail, without someone to latch on to. If you train me, then my odds of survival go up."

The beast eyed Naruto. Then, after a pregnant pause, it said**, "For someone who gets no marks on every test, this is a well-thought out trade."**

Naruto shrugged, somewhere between surprised and pleased at being complemented by a demon, and not sure whether to be angry at the half-veiled insult or not. "All that knowing stuff and crap isn't badass, so it's not important. And I guess having a family isn't badass either, but..." Naruto cast his eyes downward. "It's something that's always held special meaning to me. I've always wanted family, and you know about at least one of my parents. Having something you care about, something you'd risk your life for, and then finding a way to get the job done, and not going back on your word... I've just decided that that'll be my own, personal Nindou!" Naruto raised his head, eyes shining. "If you train me and tell me about my parents, then when I'm about to die, I'll find somewhere far away from Konoha, rip off that seal" (Naruto jerked his thumb at the piece of paper binding the prison gates shut) "and set you free, all your power included." Naruto grinned a decidedly fox-like grin, and gave the nine-tailed beast a thumbs-up. "That's a promise!"

Another pause. The Kyuubi crossed its paws and laid its head down, eyes closed in thought. Was he really considering this? He, the strongest of all the tailed beasts and The Lord of lesser demons, reduced to a schoolteacher? The boy's argument made sense, but just looking at the runt made him feel anger boiling in his stomach. Neither side would be able to get over their hatred, even if it were to be for a greater cause.

The Kyuubi opened its mouth, and Naruto felt his stomach fill with butterflies in anticipation. **"I'll think about it. If you show me you have the ability to learn by doing well during the time period of human instruction, then I might-MIGHT-be willing to consider your offer. Until then, I'm staying out if your life completely and utterly."** The beast walked backwards a bit and was shrouded in darkness once again, leaving Naruto to stare, disappointed, at a seemingly empty prison cell. **"Farewell for now, Runt."**

And then Naruto woke up.

_**END OF CHAPTER**_

I got the idea for this story from reading other Kyuubi-Naruto friendship fictions (Like "Soul of the Seal," by Mr Dust-it's a dead story, sadly, but what's written already is amazing), and while those are all well and good, something just doesn't sit right with me. Every one of them involves Time Travel, misunderstood Kyuubi, and/or a Naruto with a drastically different personality. Personally, while I do love AU fictions, I am overall a fan of the snowball effect-some people know it as the butterfly effect. Change one event in canon, and how does it affect the rest of the story? It's not a drastic change, either, it's a small one. Anyways, this is that story: It will stay true to canon as much as possible, although I do admit I may bend events a little to what I think personally ought to have happened, and I also make the concession that if it's not specifically prevented by canon, it's fair game.

No pairings-not only do I suck at romance, but it's just really not my style. I don't know the first thing about writing romance, and I don't intend to try, beyond some one-sided Naruto/Hinata (guess which side), which is the only pairing I openly and officially support at the moment I'm writing this note. Plus, there aren't very many openings for romance, unless I take a jackhammer to canon, or at least go waaaaay down the road to when Naruto isn't an outcast, Sasuke isn't a total dick, and side-characters actually matter.

Also, I have several chapters pre-written for this story already, and I'll upload them one at a time, once every two weeks. But, once I run out, though, no promises about anything. As you'd be able to tell from my OTHER story (a Bleach story about Ichigo's inner hollow), I don't update much, and when I lose interest in a topic, the story goes dead. Don't start reading this expecting it to run to completion; I may not have interest in this topic for much longer. However, I may decide it's worth it, especially if this story picks up a following (my other story went dead when I got zero reviews for my latest chapter, and the only two for the previous chapter were questions about clarifying what I had written). Reviews matter, guys, even if you think that a favorite or an alert is enough to sustain the author, it's not. S/he's either writing for himself, in which case a review is crucial to let the author know of flaws in his or her writing style, or s/the author's writing for you, in which case reviews are a godsend.

Oh yeah, here's a disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Big whoop. I don't know why this is even a necessary thing. If Kishimoto was writing fanfiction, it would just be fiction. Ergo the NAME OF THIS WEBSITE.

...Yeah, I won't be writing any more disclaimers. They're just so redundant. Just assume that this one right here applies to all chapters in this story.

Thanks for reading, and I'll see you guys in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Naruto was paying rapt attention to the teacher today. At first, his behaviour had caused many side glances to be thrown at him, but eventually, the rest of the second-years decided that it was just Naruto being Naruto.

Of course, Naruto had his own motivation: if he did well in school, the Kyuubi had promised to tell him about his family! Naturally, he still hated that damn fox for all it had done, but it was worth it if he could just get a glimpse of his parents, a sister-anything!

And so, when Naruto had a question, instead of shouting out loudly, trying to get noticed, he had whispered his questions to Hinata, who would ask for him-and, of course, the teachers would all answer Hinata.

It came as a surprise to everyone when Naruto's written grades shot up from dead last to sixth place when they took their second-to-last normal test before the final exam; only behind Sakura, Hinata, Sasuke, and three others that Naruto didn't know. Even the teachers picked up on this, and decided that since Naruto was apparently a scholar now, they would criticize him over every small error, any errant twitch of the pencil, any lapse in concentration. The idea was to make school so hard on him that he just gave up-after all, if they pressured him, overloaded him with information, and made him unable to keep up with their level of learning, he would flunk and fail.

Naruto promptly gave them a psychological middle finger by getting second place on the last test of the year, five days before the second-year final exam.

Of course, the teachers still accused him of trickery, and kept his grades intentionally low. Nobody bothered to point out that the whole point of being a ninja was to do anything to complete the mission, regardless of tactics used.

Of course, he would still shout and pitch fits and play pranks, but only outside of school. When he was inside the walls of the Academy, it was like he was a different person.

And Naruto didn't even notice the hateful glares anymore. He was going to get to learn about his family! Even if he hated that damn fox, he wasn't going to let himself feel angry at all, since there was nothing to be angry about. He expected to hear back from the fox on the day of the final exam.

That was why it was a surprise when, in the middle of the day, after Naruto had just finished discreetly placing a "kick me" sign on a random villager's back, he heard a voice. **"Runt, it's time."**

Naruto nearly tripped and gave himself away to the civilian, but caught his balance and immediately set a course for home, to maybe try and get back to that sewer place that was his mind and speak face-to-face. "Stupid fox, the school year isn't over yet! It's not time yet!" He thought out loud. It was a weird concept, he admitted-that is, thinking things to say them-but it wasn't anything that Naruto couldn't handle. After all, he WAS going to be the most badass ninja ever.

**"Your meaningless human education system holds no meaning to The Lord of Demons. I only needed proof that you could improve, should you put effort into it. Look, you haven't even changed your abysmal training schedule at all, and you've already become a rather smart being-for a human, that is. In this week alone, I've gained about a twentieth of a tail's worth of spiritual chakra-that is more than I received over the course of last year." **

Naruto scowled. "But-"

**"I am the most powerful of the tailed beasts. Your argument is invalid."** Ok, so that fox was still arrogant. Good to know things hadn't changed, Naruto thought wryly. **"Go to one of the training grounds. I want to talk to you about terms of enlightenment." **And still bossy, apparently.

Naruto frowned. "Englightenment? What's that?"

The Kyuubi conveyed a feeling of annoyance and displeasure over their mental link. "**Your training, idiot, the subject matter that I'm going to teach you. I've been thinking about under what conditions I actually give you instruction."**

Naruto wasn't sure whether to shout at it for calling him an idiot or thank it for thinking about his proposal. Either way, he went to the nearest training field, which was close to the village walls, away from everyone else. He stood in the middle of he field, feeling like an idiot just standing there. "Now what?"

**"Now, we talk."**

Naruto felt a little surprised at how civil his prisoner was sounding, but wasn't about to complain. "Ok. Wasn't the deal you teach me cool justus and stuff in order to raise my chances of living, and in return you tell me about my family?"

**"It's more complicated than that, boy. I want more."**

Naruto felt the anger rising in his chest. "I'm not releasing you, if that's what you want!"

The Kyuubi mentally snorted. **"That's not it. There are a few things that I want. While freedom is one of them, it's obvious that I'm not going to get it any time soon. So, I'll settle for all of the others."**

"And that would be?"

**"I want my former glory returned to me: my power, my reputation, and most importantly, bloodlust."**

Naruto couldn't help but question that last one. It seemed so out of place with the other two. He asked the Kyuubi to elaborate.

**"I want you to kill any opponent you meet who is explicitly your enemy."** Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his head. **"It is a reasonable request. I do not expect you to kill your friends, and I do not expect you to go all out against someone who concedes to you. But if you defeat someone, and they do not beg for mercy, you WILL kill them. Otherwise, our deal is null and void."**

Naruto hesitated. That was a moral quandary that he hadn't expected to run into so soon-at least until he was out of the academy. He knew killing was part of the job, but it hasn't seemed real to him. It would probably seem even more real when he was actually about to do it, he realized with a start. Of course he'd be killing when he became a ninja, but he never thought about it in terms of taking another man's life. **"Brat, do you want me to tell you about your family or not?"**

Well, family outweighed complete strangers. That decided that. "Fine, I agree. What about your power and reputation?"

**"Power is something I already explained to you. I want my tails to recover, so that I may return to the peak of my strength. That is inherent in you accepting my training. But the third may be the most difficult for you to accept: I want you to establish yourself as my disciple, publicly."**

If Naruto had been in his mindscape at the time, he would've done a double-take at the fox. **"What? What does that mean?!"**

**"Become the demon in human form that everyone thinks you are, at least on the field of battle."** The Kyuubi sounded both dramatic and proud, with a note of longing in its voice. **"I was the bane of existence itself, the most powerful of any demon to walk the earth. I did not leave any trace of existence in my wake. I had the touch of Death, almost literally..."** The Kyuubi trailed off for a moment, probably remembering some of his more potent carnages. **"Then, long ago, I was sealed into a human, and every time I escaped, there would be another to take its place. It has been nearly four hundred years since I have been in my own body for any significant amount of time, and people have forgotten my true potential for destruction."**

Naruto felt a pang of sympathy for the beast-if the people had just given him a chance to try, a chance to grow, he would prove that he COULD be the Godaime, or the Rokudaime. Just like the Kyuubi, his potential was being squandered due to fear of what he could become. The only difference between the two was that the Kyuubi wanted to use its power for destruction, while Naruto wanted to use his power to protect.

Then, the moment passed and Naruto realized just how much of an asshole he was dealing with. "But what does that have to do with me?" Naruto asked.

**"Make it known that you received your power from me. When your name is written in history books, even bingo books, make one of the reasons for it being there the sheer destruction you bring to your enemies, and make it well known that you were gifted with the power of the nine-tailed fox."**

Naruto was more than a little hesitant. He wanted to be remembered for protecting his friends (once he made some), for protecting the village (once he became Hokage). He didn't want to be known for destroying all he touched. "**But you won't have to,"** the fox interjected after reading his thoughts once more. **"Protect your friends by crushing your enemies. You won't be able to become allies with everyone, and you won't be able to protect everyone if you show mercy!"**

The Kyuubi's words stung, but Naruto could see a grain of truth in them. But... Something about them just didn't sit right with his view of the world. Even if the fox was a little bit right, to hell if he was going to agree with what it said. "Maybe you're right that I can't protect everyone. And maybe you're right that I can't be everyone's friend. But not trying is worse than trying and failing, cause you never gave the guy a chance to become your friend in the first place!" Naruto waited for an angry outburst from the fox, but it never came. Encouraged by the lack of a retort, Naruto continued. "If I try to make friends with someone and succeed, I have a new friend. If I try and fail, then I'm no further than my goal from when I started. I'll destroy my enemies, fine. But not before I try to convince them that they're wrong!"

Naruto had said the last part out loud, and was breathing a little hard, his mind preparing itself for the Kyuubi's anger. But it never came. **"Fine. Those are terms I can work with. Just remember: We have a contract now, an oath that is sealed by the unseen forces that be. I will be your sensei, your teacher. I will tell you about your family. And you will spread my reputation. You will help me regain my power. You will satisfy my bloodlust in my place. Are these terms agreeable to you, boy?"**

Naruto nodded.

**"Then let's start with the basic stuff. Sit down on the ground, so we can talk. Later, you'll learn how to visit your mindscape, where I reside."**

Naruto frowned angrily. "You said you would train me! If I just wanted to talk, I would have just forced you to listen to me! And we had just started, too!"

**"Nobody could force me to do anything, brat. And knowing what to do is just as important as doing it. If you don't know what you're doing, you won't be able to do it. Do you understand that?" **

Naruto nodded sourly. He really wanted to learn how to kick someone's ass... "How long is this gonna take? I have a bunch of pranks I want to do in my free time." It wasn't as if he valued the pranks more than the training, but he didn't want to burn himself out or get tired of it.

The Kyuubi laughed harshly. **"What free time?"**

Naruto frowned, confused. "Well, after I get out of the academy, I'll-"

**"I said,"** the Kyuubi interrupted angrily. **"WHAT free time?"** And Naruto understood. He was going to train day in and day out, all summer long. Of course, that didn't mean he liked it-he could still burn himself out if he wasn't careful. The Kyuubi seemed to have read his thoughts again, because it said, **"My regeneration abilities will make sure you don't suffer any internal damage from training. Your only limits are your stamina, which has been augmented by my mere presence, and your will to continue. Tell me, Naruto, do you have a weak will?"**

Naruto's fist automatically clenched at the implication that he was weak, and scowled. "What's first on your list?"

**"For starters, you need to learn how to make use of the enhanced senses that my presence grants you."**

"Huh?"

**"Enhanced senses, boy, every demon has them. We hear more, our eyesight is sharper, our sense of smell is stronger, and so on. For example, allow me to force some of my chakra to your eyes."**

Naruto frowned. "How am I supposed to do that? Chakra control is something you start to learn in third year."

The Kyuubi nearly laughed. This was the limit of Naruto's intelligence? The beast could've sworn that its host was smarter than that, especially after last week. **"All you need to do is create a bit of chakra from your stamina-you know how to do that, right? I'll take it from there."**

Naruto did as he was told...

And suddenly every color was a thousand times more vivid than they had been a moment ago. Naruto actually had to shut his eyes for a few seconds due to sensory overload. "Holy shit! This is so cool!" And it was. His eyes saw everything in much sharper detail, and the contrast between colors was much sharper. That also meant that Naruto could see farther-because of the contrast, the horizon seemed to fade away at a further point in the distance, and he could make out more shapes in detail before the horizon line. **"Heh, this is how I see things NORMALLY, boy. I don't even need to actively try to see what you're seeing."** There was a not-so-subtle hint of pride in the fox's voice.

"This is amazing!" Naruto felt overwhelmed with awe, unable to do anything else other than simply LOOK. It was as if there was a veil in front of his face that the Kyuubi had suddenly lifted, and the world was new again. The Kyuubi allowed Naruto to revel in his newfound ability for only the barest of moments before growing bored and speaking up. **"If I focus a little bit MORE of my chakra to your eyes, you'll be able to see chakra signatures."**

Naruto blinked. "Really? Let me see it!" So the Kyuubi did.

And Naruto saw. He could now see faint glows of all colors all around him-the signatures of thousands of tiny insects and somewhat small animals in the trees. But the most surprising thing was the faint green glow that seemed to emanate from the entire landscape. When questioned, the Kyuubi responded, **"It's the plants, boy,"** as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Naruto frowned. "But I thought only humans and animals had chakra."

He was rewarded for the remark by a pounding headache, when the Kyuubi slammed itself against the cage bars in his mind. **"Fool! Anything that lives has chakra. It is a fallacious assumption to assume something is true merely because it looks that way on the surface! Anyone worth existing must learn to look underneath the surface, and truly transcendent beings must learn to see what lies beneath even that!"**

Naruto scratched his head, trying to banish the pain. "Ok, ok, fine, I was wrong. Did you feel the need to do that?"

**"Anything that causes you pain is necessary, so long as it is not unwarranted."**

Naruto scowled and returned to watching the world. "Hey, fox, what's that light brown glow the trees have that the rest of the plants don't?"

**"A wood release. With one notable exception, only plants can have it."**

Naruto's head tilted to the side. "A wood release? I've never heard of it before. What does it do?"

**"Boy, it allows you to control wood."** The Kyuubi spoke in a patronizing voice that made Naruto mad. Good. If Naruto were mad, he would listen to the fox more and more. **"Don't bother trying to learn how to use it; it's impossible to do. You would need the bloodline of Hashirama Senju." **Naruto felt his vision blur a little, and the colors all faded. Apparently, the Kyuubi was done teaching him how to use demon sight. **"I fought him once before, and for a human, he is nothing to scoff at."**

Naruto wondered how strong the wood release had to be in order to put such pressure on such a great fox, but then the name caught him. Senju... Wasn't that the surname name of the first and second Hokages? "Hey, fox, can you-"

**"No. I do not talk about that man. I despise him, for he was trying to destroy hatred. He cannot change human nature, and as long as humans exist, so will hate."**

"But-" Naruto tried to prod the fox a little more, but the demon was done talking.

**"Enough. Practice channeling chakra to your eyes. I will not always be willing to expend my own chakra to give you the sight, so you must learn how to do it on your own. It takes practice to do hold the technique without thinking about it, so I'll continue your training tomorrow. I'll be instructing you on the various nuances of this skill, how to control the intensity of your gaze. Then, the day after that, we begin chakra control training. I will not be able to instruct you in taijutsu until you have found yourself a partner, so make finding one of those the priority of your academy time." **

Naruto frowned. "But how would they react to knowing about you? I don't want people to look at me and see YOU. How can I tell anyone without making them hate me?"

The Kyuubi snorted**. "That's your problem, boy, not mine."** And with that, the fox withdrew itself into Naruto's mind.

That left Naruto in a dilemma, which involved what to do for the rest of the afternoon. He was hoping the Kyuubi would have told him what to do. He slowly thought, placing his hand on his chin and thinking. He guessed the fox would tell him when it was good and ready. Now... What did the fox say about chakra? Channel it to your eyes? Sounded simple enough... Except, it took Naruto seven tries before he actually managed to get results. When his vision enhanced itself, Naruto felt himself go giddy. That was actually the first jutsu he had performed before, seeing as they were only just being taught how to mold chakra, and hadn't learned any of the seals necessary for the "Academy Three," as they were called-Henge, Clone, and Kawarimi.

After the moment for letting himself feel like the badass he was, Naruto released his hold on the sight and began to practice turning the eyes on and off. He did that for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

Five hours and tons of training later, Naruto collapsed onto his bed, sighing in satisfaction. For once, he actually felt tired-he realized that such an eye technique was probably really draining on his chakra, and he had been turning it on and off for hours, trying to get used to it. It must be impossible for someone with low chakra reserves, he thought. He grinned-just another way he was badass, he supposed.

"Hey Kyuubi?" No response. "Thanks for doing this. I mean, if you just left it at an eye technique, that would have been enough, but you're gonna be teaching me so many cool jutsus, I don't even think I'll be able to thank you properly later on." Still no response. Naruto continued. "I'm not sure how I'll be able to do that eye trick without concentrating really hard, but it's cool. And you know what? I think you're a pretty cool guy for showing it to me."

Naruto didn't really expect the fox to respond, as it was supposed to be taking a nap, so he rolled over and went to sleep.

Deep within the recesses of his mind, the fox smiled just a bit at the praise.

* * *

_**Two weeks later**_

* * *

Naruto wasn't particularly worried about the final exam for the second-years. A mere two weeks ago, he would be scared out of his mind, but since he tried pulling himself together, he found that he actually KNEW stuff. Apparently, listening in class made the teachers hate him just a little bit less! Could you imagine?

Not only that, but Naruto found the Demon Sight to be invaluable during the exam, and he wasn't above using it to see what Sasuke-teme was writing on his exam, five rows up. Of course, Naruto wasn't stupid, contrary to popular belief, so he purposely left various questions blank in order to make himself believable. Granted, the teachers would still accuse him of cheating, but without proof, they wouldn't be able to hold him back.

Naruto sighed with contentment as he dropped his pencil and raised his hand, indicating he was done.

One of the instructors-Mizuki-raised an eyebrow at the whisker-marked boy, but took the paper without complaint. "Fine. Leave the room; we don't want you causing trouble for the people who are actually trying."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at the man, but did as he was told, going out and fully intending to run straight to Ichiraku's for a quick snack of three bowls. At least, that was the plan, until Naruto felt two hands grab him and push him up against a wall.

When Naruto regained his orientation, he saw Sasuke, a suspicious look in his eyes. "Oh, Sasuke-teme. What do you want?"

The look in the boy's eyes seemed to grow harder. "Who's your teacher?"

Naruto froze up for just a moment before he pushed the Uchiha away. "What's it to ya, teme?" He asked, feigning anger-which wasn't hard, since the sight of the Uchiha generally made his blood boil anyways. "Why do you think I have a teacher? Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you!"

Sasuke growled. "Don't play games with me, Dobe! I've seen your improvement! The instructors might have everyone else fooled because they keep your grades low, but not me. My eyes see everything."

Naruto paused to appreciate the irony in Sasuke-teme's statement before responding. "Fine, I have a teacher, but I'm not telling you anything about him."

Sasuke growled slightly. "I WILL learn about your teacher, and I have two months to do so. Someone who can actually help YOU must be someone of immeasurable talent. Imagine what they could do for someone who's worth it."

Naruto swung wildly at Sasuke. "Say that to my face!"

Sasuke hn'd. "I just did... But, this isn't the place for a fight. Meet me at training ground thirty-two as soon as you can. If I win, you tell me about your teacher."

Naruto briefly considered it. There was no way he would lose to such a bastard, anyways, but this was a secret he couldn't afford to give up. "What's in it for me?"

Sasuke let loose a conceited grin. "If you win, I'll consent to let you train with me sometimes."

Naruto paused for a moment. To an onlooker, it may have seemed like Naruto was genuinely interested, and Sasuke's grin turned triumphant as a result, but it was for a completely different reason.

'You want me to WHAT?!' Naruto thought furiously to the Kyuubi.

**"Throw the match. Tell him about me. He's a worthy sparring partner; I've seen his style. And the stronger your sparring partner, the more beneficial it is to both of us. Additionally, it will be good practice in case you ever need to kill any Uchihas in the future."**

Naruto thought for a second. "Isn't Sasuke-teme the last of them?"

**"No."** And the Kyuubi refused to elaborate any more.

Naruto internally growled, but outside he managed to keep a composed and thoughtful look. Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently. "Well, Dobe?"

"Shut up, I'm thinking, Teme!" Naruto snapped. After a brief moment, he nodded his head. "Fine. But don't think I'm gonna lose, bastard!"

Sasuke turned and began to walk away. Over his shoulder, he called, "As soon as you can, Dobe! And make sure you remember everything you can. I'm gonna enjoy learning what your teacher knows."

Naruto failed to respond, only because he was otherwise engaged. "I'm not throwing the match, you know. I'm gonna beat that bastard down before I tell him about you."

The Kyuubi snorted. **"Either way, it'll speed up your training. I merely wished for you to tell him the burden you carry, so that you are not alone... It's detrimental to your mind, and therefore your spiritual chakra, no matter how much physical chakra you have. Additionally, you are unable to learn my envisioned taijutsu style without a partner, and to become the best, you must train with the best. And that is detrimental to me."** Privately, the fox was reluctant to praise the thrice-blasted Uchiha, but he needed Naruto at his best, or there wouldn't be nearly enough blood for his liking later on. The farsighted pursuits took precedence over ephemeral hatreds, and it wasn't as if the Uchiha was going to live for that long, anyways.

Naruto couldn't help a comment. "It almost sounds like you care about me, Mr. I-shall-destroy-the-village."

The Kyuubi was silent for just a small moment. It had only been a couple of days. Surely the boy hadn't reached a point where he could openly make light of a huge threat to the village, had he? It made the Kyuubi angry-how dare this boy mock the killing intent of the great nine-tails?! In an attempt to avoid looking ill-composed, the Kyuubi adopted its favorite non-angry tone of voice: snide. **"You doubt my abilities?"**

Naruto chuckled a bit, grinning confidently. "Not at all. I just think you wouldn't do it. Nobody is pure evil; there's always at least a kernel of good somewhere. Some day, I intend to draw that out."

The Kyuubi snorted derisively. **"Brat, I am literally 75-25 split of chakra and hatred. That doesn't leave any room for good in me. If you want to test my resolve, why don't you come in here and rip that seal off my cage?"**

Naruto didn't fall for the taunt, and instead opted to bring up another subject: Food. "You know, I'd say we could keep the bastard waiting for an hour, don't you think? And one hour leaves us time for some ramen before we meet up. Any preferences?"

The Kyuubi decided to close off the link, with a few parting words. "**Do I sound like I care?"** And then it was gone.

Naruto began walking off the grounds. "Alright then, Miso Pork it is!"

* * *

Sasuke Uchiha was not a patient child. Even for a kid only a decade old, he expected getting he wanted, when he wanted it-as he should, obviously, given his family's power and status.

So what was taking that goddamned Dobe so long to show up?!

"Hey, Sasuke-teme! Sorry I'm late!" Obviously, it was Naruto, a fake grin plastered on his face. And he didn't sound sorry to be late at all.

Sasuke didn't want to waste any time. "I see you didn't bring your teacher," he stated bluntly. "Are you backing out?"

Naruto cracked his knuckles. "I could ask you the same question!"

"That doesn't even make any sense! I wasn't supposed to bring anything to begin with. Of course, a dobe like you WOULD forget that."

Naruto growled, obviously angry. "Well I'm sick of seeing you up on your high horse, Teme! Let's get fightin'!"

Sasuke was only too happy to oblige, and initiated conflict.

The last Uchiha charged straight forward, hoping to catch Naruto off-guard, but the blond had reflexes that were over-developed from years of avoiding villager sneak attacks. He dodged under a punch, and returned a low sweeping kick. Sasuke jumped lightly, and tried to grab Naruto's jumpsuit, but Naruto did a quick backflip away, and charged forward, initiating offense as the Uchiha dodged everything Naruto threw at him, easily.

Sasuke had to admit, Naruto was fast, and he had no doubt that the orange idiot could keep it up all afternoon. But what was the use of being durable if you couldn't do anything useful while you lasted?

Sasuke smirked at the thought and was immediately treated to a fist to the face. He scowled and shot a fist out at Naruto's head, and connected as the latter of the two's forward momentum from his attacks lessened the five behind his body. An audible "pop!" was heard, and Sasuke couldn't help but feel immense satisfaction as he saw Naruto on the ground, holding a hand to his nose.

"What's wrong Dobe? Had enough?"

Naruto then removed his hand from his face, revealing a lot of blood, and a completely normal-looking nose.

What?

"I'm just getting started, Teme!" Sasuke froze for a second, and was quickly pushed on the defensive. Of course, he could have obviously taken control of the fight again at any time, but he needed to think, and he couldn't strike and think at the same time.

What had just happened? Sasuke definitely had seen, felt, and heard his fist connect with the inferior child who was valiantly trying to break his guard using such poor taijutsu, so why was his nose fine? And the blood! That couldn't be explained, unless he HAD broken Naruto's nose. So, a healing technique? Sasuke grinned. He would definitely ask Naruto's teacher to teach him that one!

Sasuke could have chosen any number of holes in Naruto's guard to exploit, but arbitrarily chose the one near his gut, knocking the wind out of him, sending him to the ground.

Naruto didn't even pause before getting up again.

Sasuke's perpetual frown (which was only ever replaced by his conceited smile) deepened. How quickly did this healing jutsu of Naruto's work? Did he cast it prior to the fight? If so, he would have to wait until the jutsu wore off... Or, he thought, it was possible to just beat him up so quickly and efficiently, he didn't get a chance to heal until he was already knocked out.

Yes. Sasuke liked that second option very much.

Naruto took a punch to the gut, And as he fell to the ground, he immediately felt the Kyuubi open their link, giving him easier access to his high-speed regeneration. Naruto thanked the fox silently and jumped back up, his quickened healing rate allowing him to ignore the rapidly fading aches in his gut and nose.

It was interesting, actually, fighting Sasuke-teme. The boy was obviously arrogant, and a bastard, and stuck-up, yadda yadda yadda... But something felt different about this fight, as opposed to their countless other schoolyard squabbles. Naruto couldn't tell what.

**"It's a fight for pride,"** the Kyuubi monotoned. "**Someone refusing to make themselves known to him, while openly teaching you? It makes his blood boil. He has nothing but his studies left, and he doesn't care enough about anyone else to wonder what his actions do to them."**

Naruto faltered in his attack barrage for a moment, and Sasuke scored another direct hit to his right arm, making it feel numb for a moment before the Kyuubi banished the feeling. That was right; Sasuke didn't have a family or friends either. With how stuck-up and bastard-ish he acted all the time, Naruto had nearly forgotten their similar burdens. The difference was that the villagers fed the Uchiha's pride like a hungry infant, crying and screaming when it didn't get what it wanted. Naruto was more like the child who was too malnourished to have the energy to ask for food.

Sasuke pressed his advantage, striking Naruto repeatedly, definitely trying to break bones, and Naruto shook himself out of the Kyuubi-induced reverie just in time to receive an uppercut to the jaw.

Naruto caught himself falling, but heard Sasuke say, "Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"

Naruto swore loudly, almost enough to be heard over the sudden, roaring fireball that was about to envelop him. He looked up just in time to see an orb of red and orange envelop him.

Sasuke smirked as he watched Naruto ignite. Oh, sure, he might be toasted, but he wouldn't die, and he would definitely be out cold after taking an attack like that.

That's when he heard that loud battle cry from inside the fireball, and was more than a little surprised when Naruto shot out of the Katon, looking remarkably like a bat out of hell, fists ready.

Sasuke sidestepped the telegraphed attack and elbowed Naruto's exposed back, slamming him to the ground. He delivered a quick jab to the side of the boy's head, finally keeping him down.

Sasuke watched with mild fascination as Naruto's skin bubbled like boiling water with a faint red glow, completely healing the few second-degree burns Naruto had taken from the Goukakyu. He looked up and began to walk away, wondering what could possibly have possessed someone to teach the Dobe a skill that powerful, yet keep it a secret from him, the last Uchiha!

Sasuke glanced over at Naruto, and found, to his surprise, the boy was sitting up, rubbing his head! "Oooowwww, Sasuke-teme! Why'd you go and hit me that hard? Bastard!"

Sasuke crossed his arms. Secretly, he was impressed; that blow should've kept Naruto down and out for at least five minutes!

... As if he would ever tell the Idiot that. "Hm. As if you could EVER manage to measure up to the power of the Uchiha clan. Now, pay up."

"Why, you..."

"Don't act so surprised. You knew when you made the bet that if you lost, this would happen."

"But I didn't plan on losing!"

"But you did, as you obviously would."

Naruto made an angry face "Why, you..." Really, the Dobe didn't exactly have a large repertoire of comebacks.

Sasuke made an annoyed and apathetic face (yes, at the same time). "Quit stalling," he said.

Naruto suddenly looked very uncomfortable, and Sasuke couldn't help but wonder why. "Well, you see, my teacher, as far as the village is concerned, doesn't exist."

Sasuke tried to work out the possible implications of that. Was the Dobe training by himself? No, too much of an improvement. Was the teacher a civilian? No, too skilled with stamina and speed to be so. Ninja who wasn't on record in Konoha? Maybe...

"Did you accept training from a Missing-nin?!" Sasuke demanded. THAT kind of social stigma would be a little much for the Uchiha.

"NO!" Naruto shouted back, quickly-but not too quickly, Sasuke noted. The boy was telling the truth. "My teacher can ONLY teach me, is what I mean. My sensei only exists in my mind."

Sasuke crossed his arms, not letting his confusion show on his face. "Dobe, you aren't making sense. Are you really as stupid as you look?"

Naruto began to twiddle his thumbs, and Sasuke was off-put by the lack of violent response. "No, but..." Naruto paused and cocked his head to the side, eyes unfocusing. He suddenly scowled. "I'm not stalling! And I'm not trying to get out of it either!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Dobe, you're not making any sense," he repeated. "Please tell me that there's actually a brain in there. Otherwise, I might never find your teacher."

Naruto suddenly focused on Sasuke, looking almost apprehensive. "I didn't say that out loud, did I?" Without letting the duck-haired boy answer, Naruto continued. "I guess it doesn't matter, though, since I'm about to tell you anyways... The reason you can't meet my teacher is because..." Naruto drew a breath. "Sasuke, my sensei is the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Naruto held his breath, waiting for Sasuke's response. After a solid three minutes of nothing but Sasuke staring nondescriptly at him, the teme said, in a voice that contained a hint of humour, "So let me get this straight: even with an ancient demon on your side, you still lost to me. My god, you're pathetic." Sasuke's faint grin, for once, didn't seem so mocking anymore.

Naruto's face brightened. "Tem-I mean, Sasuke!"

The Uchiha waved a hand nonchalantly and dropped the grin. "Don't think we're friends, Naruto. Knowing a certain fact about you doesn't change who or what you are, so why should I care? To me, you're still the dead-last loser, and your little passenger doesn't change that. All that's changed is that I know you're going to be getting better, eventually, so I might need to grace you with my presence for a spar every once in a while."

Naruto couldn't believe it. Sasuke was just accepting what he said at face value? And he didn't think any less of him for it?! Granted, it would be hard for the relationship between the two of them to get any worse, but Naruto sure as hell didn't expect it to get BETTER. "You're just gonna believe me, just like that?" He asked, incredulously.

Sasuke shrugged. "No. I had to think about it, first. But, it makes sense. The villagers hate you for a reason that no one knew before now, and it's only the older ones, about twenty-four and older, who are actively hostile to you. That would put them at about twelve or older when the Kyuubi attacked, which is about as old as the average chuunin who would have to have fought the demon fox. Then, we have the Yondaime supposedly killing it, but Iruka-sensei told us in class that only a natural force of nature can kill a demon of any strength, which conflicts with the official story of that night. Additionally, your birthday is the same day as the attack, from what you said that one day in class, so your story matches. Finally, I can't see you being able to think up a lie like that so quickly, not with your limited brainpower. You must either be telling the truth, or think you're telling the truth."

Naruto didn't even care about the insult, and wrapped a very surprised Sasuke in a hug ("Dobe, stop!"). "Sasuke, I knew you couldn't be a bastard ALL the way through!"

Sasuke pulled away, disgusted. "Just because you have a demon, doesn't mean that our bet is off. I want to learn everything it teaches you. Jutsu, abilities, everything."

Naruto nodded. "Right, I'll pass along every lesson I get from it... You know, as soon as it actually teaches me something, that is." Sasuke nodded, apparently satisfied. "And, you'll need to meet me here every Saturday and Monday, so I can learn my taijutsu style. Apparently, the Kyuubi picked up some moves over the years, and I need a partner to test it on."

Sasuke turned on his heel and began walking away. "I suppose I can bear working with you twice a week," he called. "I don't think you'll rub off on me, if I keep my guard up. See you then, Dobe."

Naruto called a goodbye to the retreating figure, and turned his attention inward to the voice he had been ignoring. "Now, Kyuubi, what am I learning today?"

In a tone that suggested that it was extremely happy to have the Uchiha gone, the Kyuubi said, **"Right. So, boy, it's about time we started on chakra control. The more control you have, the more jutsu you can do. It lets you create just the right amount of chakra, meaning that you can use more jutsu and not get tired as fast." **Naruto nodded, paying rapt attention. **"Now, in your case, you will probably never run out of chakra, thanks to me. What you need to learn it for is mostly... Practical reasons."**

Naruto tilted his head. "Practical?"

**"Yes, brat, that's what I said. You got cotton in your ears? Chakra control gives you abilities that non-ninja would otherwise attribute to deities or spirits. Now, go climb that tree without using your hands."**

Naruto fell backwards. "What? That's impossible! Gravity will pull me down!"

The fox sighed. "**Not if you focus your chakra to your feet. It acts like an attraction, forcing your feet to stick. But be careful. Too much and you'll crack the bark. Too little and you fall off." **The fox snickered. **"Fall off a lot so I can laugh at your pain."**

Naruto laughed. This wouldn't take him more than a day or two to master... Or so he thought.

It was going to be a long summer.

_**END CHAPTER 2**_

**Happy thanksgiving, everyone! Alright, here it is, two weeks later, just like I promised. And you'll get another one in another two weeks. To be honest, I forgot that Thanksgiving fell on the 27****th****-didn't realize I'd be giving you an update today.**

**Anyways, what'd ya think? Reviews are always nice, and they let me know what the public opinion is, what you guys are thinking, etc… **

**Anyways, I have a situation that I want your help with: The next pre-written bit I have is nothing but a filler that explains what goes on in the two months that Naruto has off for summer. Alone, that's not a problem. BUT… The next pre-written bit I have after THAT comes after a timeskip to the end of the third year, and I don't want to have filler, followed directly by a timeskip. There's nothing wrong with that, in theory, it just doesn't sit well with my writing style. I don't like doing it. **

**So, which should I do? Upload the two pre-written bits together and don't worry about it, or upload only the timeskip, and leave out the info-filler? In the end, only my decision will matter, no matter what you say, but I'm unsure at the moment, and a vote would help sway my decision one way or another.**

**Anyways, anybody like what I did with Sasuke's character? He and Naruto could become friends, never to become enemies! Or, it could set them up for an even bigger falling out. Or maybe it's some third option that no one's ever thought about before! Who knows? Only time will tell.**


	3. Chapter 3

Naruto stood stock still, waiting for Sasuke to make his move. His fingers twitched in anticipation. This was match number sixteen between him and Sasuke, and it was Naruto's chance to finally tie Sasuke in the standings. Sasuke had won the first six easy, but underestimated him the next three, and by then, Naruto had almost caught up to the genius of the Uchiha.

The setting was a training ground 32, a flat expanse of dirt and many patches of short, thick, coarse grass. It also happened to be the favorite training ground of everyone's favorite academy students. Then, Sasuke _moved. _

Naruto quickly adopted the Academy Standard taijutsu style, seeing as it was rather more... Defensive, the best word would be, than the style Kyu-sensei had been teaching him over the past two months. Sasuke lunged forward with a right hook, and Naruto blocked with his forearm.

Naruto really had to thank Sasuke for fixing up his taijutsu-apparently; his form was "so bad, a piece of Swiss cheese had less holes to exploit." Now, it wasn't anywhere CLOSE to perfect, but it sure as hell wasn't as bad as it was.

The black-haired student followed up with a roundhouse kick that Naruto ducked under. The Uzumaki quickly swung an uppercut at the Uchiha, but missed completely as Sasuke completed his rotation and bent down, moving directly into a low, sweeping kick. Naruto jumped over Sasuke and jabbed an elbow, cracking the dry ground where the Uchiha was not two seconds ago. Naruto felt his elbow pop, and then almost immediately it popped back into place without any prompting. Instant regeneration, gotta love it. It's just. So. AWESOME.

Sasuke had dodged by doing a somersault forward, but that put him off balance for just a moment. Naruto saw his chance. Immediately his entire form changed. The bulky, adaptable stances of the Academy Standard melted away as Naruto lunged forward at the speed of a B-rank genin, much faster than he should have been able to, seeing as he wasn't even a D-rank genin... Yet.

Sasuke's eyes widened right before Naruto planted his fist in his jaw. Sasuke stumbled backwards, but Naruto was already on him, combining side-strikes and hooks, uppercuts, and a variety of kicks, always moving forward, pushing Sasuke back.

The Demon Arts of taijutsu were designed specifically to resemble the attacking type of a devil, or of a being possessed. The relentless offense was what one would likely picture as anger incarnate; anger wasn't necessary to use it, but it did act as a loci to focus anger onto, thus making the user far more deadly when influenced by bloodlust-or so the Kyuubi said. Naruto hadn't actually been very angry when using it thus far, so he couldn't attest to that himself. The main drawback of this style was that it only worked effectively in one-on-one fights, as it left the user's guard wide-open to other attacks. The only reason it worked on its target at all even in one-on-one matches was because it never gave them time to recover. Using the style effectively required speed and stamina of the highest caliber, and to a lesser extend, power.

In some ways, Naruto thought, the Demon Style was a great equalizer. If he could master this style, it would boil the entire fight down to who had better basic ninja skills. It minimized the role of the thinking mind and maximized the role of primal instincts and muscle memory to win.

That didn't stop Sasuke from getting used to said style, though. He was the one who Naruto had LEARNED on. At first, Sasuke had been skeptical as to what a four-legged beast could possibly know about hand-to-hand combat, but it was apparently a lot. And what Naruto learned, Sasuke learned. He knew all the strengths and weaknesses if the style, and even had a rudimentary grasp of its usage, although he preferred the "obviously superior" style that was traditionally passed down by the Uchiha clan.

Then, a sandaled foot connected with his face and he flew back ten meters (about ten yards) before landing._ On second thought, maybe I shouldn't underestimate him._

While Sasuke still disliked Naruto on a social level to the nth degree, it was becoming increasingly impossible for him to disregard his skill on the battlefield. In fact, he watched as Naruto turned himself from nothing to everything in two months. His progress was... Scary. For one boy to train that much, training so much it even made Sasuke green... It hit the Uchiha hard, right in the pride. So he buckled down and joined Naruto for more than just two practice sessions a week.

Of course, Sasuke knew that the Dobe was jacked up on demon juice half the time, healing all his fatigue and any injuries he sustained, so it wasn't as surprising as it could have been, but it was still unsettling to see the dead last loser as a taijutsu dynamo.

And taijutsu was just the tip of the iceberg; already the Kyuubi had taught them one basic jutsu of each of the five basic elements: a Doton that summoned a small wall of earth to use as cover, a Suiton that condensed water in the atmosphere into a whiplike form to swing at your enemy, a Katon that shot scores of embers at the opponent (Sasuke had laughed at that one, until Naruto roasted his ass with the rapid fire that wasn't afforded by the single-shot grand fireball), a Fuuton that basically redirected the wind towards your opponent, making it harder for them to move, and a Raiton that gave a shock on contact, paralyzing the enemy for that crucial second or two that it took to finish him.

Naruto had been less than impressed at the "lack of bad-assery" involved, until he took two weeks to learn the Raiton, which Sasuke had picked up on in less than an hour. The tables were turned when the Uchiha had taken an equivalent amount of time to learn the Doton. After that, the Kyuubi had announced their chakra affinities were Fuuton and Raiton, for Naruto and Sasuke respectively. Sasuke had raised an eyebrow-there hadn't been an Uchiha who wasn't Katon-natured in recorded history-but the evidence spoke for itself.

Learning the jutsu themselves were easy, but figuring out the hand seals that went with them was not. The Kyuubi, being a beast that could mould chakra just by thinking about it, didn't remember the seals very well, often giving descriptions of _**"Oh, there were two tiger seals and a dog somewhere in there. Definitely a rooster."**_ After all, what use were hand seals when you jut molded chakra directly?

It made learning a measly five jutsu a chore-while it DID only take Sasuke an hour to actually go about learning the Raiton, he had first taken a day to figure out the correct hand seals to activate it. It slashed their progress immensely. Still, Sasuke was surprised how easy it was for him and Naruto to learn jutsus of different elements, and how quickly they did so. From what he had been taught, it was nigh impossible to use more than two or three elements effectively. When Sasuke had asked Naruto, he replied in what could only be a mockery of the Kyuubi's real voice: _"Bah! Those idiots have no idea. It's harder, yes, but only if you don't keep yourself balanced early on. It will always be easier to use your affinity, and harder to use the element you're strong against, but as long as you don't over specialize at first, your body won't get used to producing only one or two types of chakra, and you'll have no trouble later on down the road."_ It had been highly amusing, from both sides-Although, Naruto had immediately doubled over, claiming a headache directly afterward.

Of course, the ease with which they learned the techniques were all mere upper D-rank. When they started learning stuff that was worth knowing, Sasuke had no doubt that it would take them up to a month per jutsu.

In addition to that, they had learned how to do the Academy three, but with a little twist. Those techniques, E-rank, were so basic, the Kyuubi was confident that even "low-life, puny mortal pests" could learn to do it without the seals. And they did. It had taken the rest of their ninjutsu training up to this point, but Sasuke could now do, seal-less and smokeless, the Kawarimi, Bunshin, and Henge.

Naruto even now still couldn't do the Bunshin technique, no matter how proficient he was at the other two. The Kyuubi had, after some rigorous chakra control training, determined that Naruto's chakra capacity was simply too big to do the normal clone technique, unless he made thousands at once. Naruto didn't see the problem with that, but Sasuke had (not very) patiently explained that a clone's purpose as a distraction wouldn't work if the swap was obvious; having a thousand clones was all very well, but when the target knew all of them were fake, he could rely on something other than his vision to avert the illusion. A clone didn't impact any of the senses except the visual, so any more than one or two would be useless, as it would make it easy to spot the real one with scent, hearing, etc.

Naruto still didn't understand, but Sasuke and the Kyuubi (although they never directly conversed) agreed that Naruto was too dense to understand strategy. In any case, the Kyuubi had Naruto slated to begin an alternate form of the technique that he had learned about from the Nidaime, during his tenure in the soul of one Mito Uzumaki, who Naruto was impatient to learn more about. It was called the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, and it was apparently so chakra-intensive, making one shadow clone was the same as making a hundred thousand normal clones-Which, for Naruto, was exactly what the doctor ordered.

All in all, their training was going quite well, if not somewhat slow. Sasuke had thought there would be more to it when he signed up, but it had only been two months. He'd stick with it for a while longer to see if the training picked up to include something more dangerous. Speaking of dangerous… Naruto jumped back and chuckled a bit.

A red haze descended over Naruto's skin, and Sasuke cursed. It was still a new technique that Naruto couldn't handle that well, but the Kyuubi's chakra was a fearsome tool. From what the Kyuubi told Sasuke through Naruto, what Naruto was able to handle right now without any ill side effects was about a fourth of a tail, but his tolerance for demonic chakra was rising quickly. Given another two months, he'd be able to hold an entire tail's worth with little effort at all.

Naruto was on him in an instant, grinning in a feral manner. The attacks came quickly, and each time, Sasuke was pushed to the limits of his speed to block. It was still possible, of course, the blond youth wasn't THAT strong or fast, after all, but the tables had definitely been turned. Sasuke thought that the Sharingan would definitely come in useful right about now, if only he were able to use it. It would render Naruto's advantage moot, but it wouldn't exactly make it possible to dominate the fight, as he could've without Naruto's tailed form, but it would have put Naruto at a slight-very slight-disadvantage. Right now, though, it was a struggle to block, let alone counterattack!

There! Sasuke suddenly saw a hole in Naruto's guard, and ducked under a lightning-fast strike, bringing up his arm to deflect the other punch upwards. Naruto stumbled back, and the Uchiha capitalized. Sasuke felt himself slip into the Demon Style, surprised at how easy it was to use anything that wasn't the Uchiha clan's specialty. He wasn't nearly as good with it as Naruto, but that didn't mean he couldn't use it. He did, after all, demand to learn everything Naruto did, and he wasn't about to let his taijutsu training go to waste.

It was good, he thought, as he slammed his fist into Naruto's abdomen, that he wasn't becoming overly specialized. An overly specialized ninja is a dead ninja, especially when still on the genin level when practically everything is a threat. If someone knew how to counter his family, he wasn't going to be helpless anymore. And the Academy Standard was a joke, really. Anyone could counter it-hell, they were even taught counters to it IN THEIR TAIJUTSU CLASSES. It was as if they wanted the style to be useless. The Academy standard was very defensive, with little to no offensive capabilities. It was more about staying alive than winning, and that was not ok.

In any case, Sasuke slammed the heel of his palm into Naruto's upper chest with finality, and he definitely heard a cracking noise, but it was faint. Naruto didn't exactly fly backwards as Sasuke had expected, but he did fall flat on his ass, and the red chakra amassed at the point of impact, healing the damage, before completely dissipating. Naruto stood slowly. "Damn, Sasuke, that was a good job. I thought I'd finally get the lead!"

Sasuke turned up his nose. "Hm. As if I'd ever let that happen. Like I said, even with an ancient demon, you can't stop me."

"**He's got a point, brat. You need to learn how to use more of my chakra. Maybe get yourself to two tails before your third year at the Academy is over."**

Naruto scowled inwardly, but grinned jokingly to his friend. "Yeah? Say that to my face, Teme!"

Sasuke played along and smiled, eyes closed. "I just did, Dobe." He opened his eyes, suddenly serious again. "So, the third year begins in four days. Ready?"

Naruto pumped his fist. "I'm excited as hell! No way anyone else can keep up with me now!"

Sasuke frowned. "Only problem is that you won't be able to use any of your new techniques. You said that you wanted to keep your training a secret? We're lucky no one's stumbled upon us already."

Naruto's grin faded quickly. He hadn't thought of that. Would he have to hide his skills forever? **"Not forever, brat. Just until you're strong enough to beat down anyone who would try to stop you from training with me. Which shouldn't take more than a year or two. Even now, it'd probably be safe to tell the more tight-lipped of your brood-mates, although I wouldn't suggest doing that unless you're willing to make some threats to their health."**

"What're you gonna do, Uzumaki? It's always possible that you take your place as the second best in the class."

Naruto, despite how much he wanted to listen to the fox, could not ignore his rivalry for the time being. "Who're you calling second best, huh?"

Sasuke crossed his arms. "Scoreboard," he said, referring to Naruto's current win-loss record.

Naruto growled. "Yeah? When the Academy comes back into session next week, we'll SEE who's second best!"

Sasuke waved a flippant hand. "Whatever, Dobe. I'll see you at the Academy." Sasuke left the boy alone with his fox.

The Kyuubi moaned in frustration. **"Brat, this is exactly what we're trying to avoid! If you rise to the top, people will grow suspicious of you! You will be investigated!"**

Naruto huffed"Kyu-sensei, why do you need to keep quiet? I still don't see the reasoning behind it! I mean, I'll keep our secret if you want me to, but…" He trailed off.

"**Boy, imagine what it's like to be trapped in a cold, dark room. You cannot die. You can hardly move. You cannot even perceive the world around you unless someone else allows you to. You have no voice. You have no will. The most you can do is scream, and no one is listening."** Naruto shuddered at the description. It was horribly discomforting.

But the Kyuubi wasn't done. **"Then, someone comes along, four hundred years later, to your dark, dank prison cell. He doesn't let you out, no, but he carves a window in the wall, enough to let the light in. Enough to make you feel not free, but just a little closer."**

Naruto realized that the Kyuubi was talking about himself. **"Then, the jail warden comes along and finds that a window, a potential path for escape has opened up. He doesn't want the prisoner gone. He wants every avenue of escape closer off forever. He hates the prisoner's freedom. He fills in the window, but also replaces the prison bars, reinforces the walls, the entire jail is remodeled. Escape is farther than ever, and it's even worse because you had remembered what it's like to hear birds chirping."**

Naruto felt moved. He couldn't think of what to say. He had never thought about it like that, but when it came down to it, the Kyuubi was telling the truth; he couldn't perceive anything beyond his prison cell in Naruto's soul unless he could get enough chakra out through that window that Naruto had carved by accepting the training. The Kyuubi was truly alone.

"**Don't get the wrong idea, boy. I still hate your guts. You carry the key to my freedom, yet you refuse to use it. But you… You make my imprisonment slightly less unbearable. Slightly. Although, it's not enough to make up for this god-forsaken mindscape. A sewer, really? You couldn't have had a royal palace, filled with cushions?"**

Naruto replied with a smile. "I thought it would be easier to bathe in." It was a joke, but the Kyuubi had set Naruto's mind running.

The Kyuubi sensed Naruto's spinning emotions, and snorted. **"Don't think I care about you. It's like you're the fifth layer of hell, while if you get found out, I'd get sent to the eighth. If you give me the chance to do so without killing myself, I WILL kill you."** Seeing that Naruto was too distracted to listen, the Kyuubi sighed. **"Hey, brat, it's time to start your ancestry lessons."**

Naruto's mind suddenly stopped its turmoil. "Really?"

The Kyuubi sent the impression of a head nodding. **"I did promise you, didn't I? I imagine if I start back far enough in your lineage, we'll reach your parents by the day of your graduation, perhaps a little sooner or later."**

"Ne, Kyu-sensei, that's not exactly fair! I don't care about some old crusty guy who's been dead for four centuries! I want to know about my close relatives!"

**"But without background knowledge, what you learn otherwise will not carry the same weight. You want to know how you came to be? We will start as far back as we can, to paint the most accurate picture possible."** Naruto protested, but the Kyuubi continued regardless. **'It all started when Ieyasu Senju, the great-great grandson of the Sage of Six Paths and your own great-times-ten grandfather, grew disgusted with the clash between the Uchiha and the Senju. He took his son, Hideyoshi, and founded Uzushiogakure. For the rest of the warring states period, it was nothing more than a massive clan compound, but Hideyoshi loved the place. In fact, it was the inspiration for the Hidden Villages of today. Without The Hidden Whirlpool, Konoha might not exist. **

"**Hideyoshi took the last name Uzumaki in order to better express his love for whirlpools, as well as to show how proficient he was in the usage of swirl-seals. He showed the world his prowess by creating the world's first Jinchuuriki: himself." **

The fox paused to let the information dump process. **"I have been with the Uzumaki clan ever since. If you want to know more, come to your mindscape. We'll talk there."**

Naruto nodded, and sat in a meditative position, and closed his eyes. And he listened.

_**END OF CHAPTER**_

**Sorry for the two-week delay, but I have a couple of good reasons. One is that this entire chapter is not part of the pre-written stuff I have prepared. When it came down to it, I was going to skip the chapter completely, but then after hearing so many people want to see the progression of Naruto's character, I decided that my original pre-written part was too much info-dump, not enough character progression. And reading over what I wrote, you guys were right; I thank you a lot for telling me what you did. I like this chapter.**

**The second reason is that my Internet has been acting wonky. ALL. MONTH. I can write stuff fine, but I can't upload anything. I can't even access Fanfiction. If you're reading this, of course, it means the problem's been resolved, but rest assured I've had this done for twelve days before posting.**

**The final reason, and the best, is that I'm a high school student, and exams were last week-that is, for those of you reading this in the future, the third week of December. For all of that week and the week before, I've been studying my butt off, hoping to not suck on my midterms.**

**I think the next chapter I post is going to be another thing that's not pre-written; I'm suddenly overcome by a desire to tell you at least SOMETHING that happens in Naruto's third year at the academy… Although, once again, if you think going ahead with other stuff is the better option, let me know and I'll consider it. **

**So, I'll have another chapter for you in two weeks, assuming I don't encounter any problems. I think I'll write one more chapter for character development to slot into the third year, before I continue with what I had written already.**

**Happy holidays to everyone!**

**Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter!**


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